On this day, 15 years ago, a little game called Super Smash Bros. came out on the Nintendo 64 in North America. Since then, the successful franchise has had two more additional entries, and a fourth one potentially coming out later on this year. For me, this was the stepping stone to becoming who I am today, from discovering my favorite Nintendo franchises to eventually finding the wonderful community of My IGN here. Being one of my favorite video game series of all-time, I can't help but fondly recall all the wonderful moments I've had during these past 15 years.
During my early childhood life, the Nintendo 64 was my primary gaming system. I didn't really care about anything else; I just loved playing the games that were given to me. However, one day, I went to my cousin's place as usual when I saw the intro playing before my eyes on the television screen. He just told me that it recently came out, and he proceeded to ask me if I wanted to join him in the game; of course, I never turned down the offer to play. Being a newbie of the game, I selected whoever appealed to me the most at the time, who I believe was Link.
That day started a tradition that endures even as I write this. We were, and still are, incredibly competitive with this game (and series), but it is through this understanding that we were also able to have such a great time for each "Smashing" session.
When my brother and I obtained our own copy of the game, we began messing around with all the other modes of the game, with hilarious results if I may add! We had our own version of Pong, using Samus' powerful charge shot and two Foxes bouncing the energy blast back and forth with their reflectors, and we would always laugh whenever our shields broke or get blasted off with a whopping 600% of damage. There was also this weird glitch (if one would call it that) with having Fox using the reflector on four red shells; it was comical to see him rack up maximum damage everytime! 
Of course, there were a couple things that I still recall. Of how Link was the main hero of the Zelda series instead of 'Zelda'. How we were baffled with our discovery that Samus was, in fact, a woman by seeing her getting shot by a lazer gun.
Or how I never unlocked Ness until the Wii Virtual console release... XD
What I adore about Super Smash Bros. Melee is how much of a step up it was compared to the beloved 64 entry. With the plethora of new modes and refinements of gameplay to incredible depths, Melee truly feels like the core Smash Bros. experience.
It was also the first entry where just about my whole posse of younger relatives were able to join what my older cousin and I first established. Alongside Melee's hectic gameplay speeds, just about every match of ours was as frantic as the closest matches in sports games. We jeered whenever someone got knocked out first from the frenzied free-for-all matches, and during our most epic failures, we all laughed heartily; we roared when the confrontation between the remaining two players reached its final moments.
It always seemed to come down between my older cousin and myself. 
Even with the solo experience, Melee kept me busy with all the additional modes and single player options. The final events were grueling and really tested my skills as a Smasher, and I had to be creative to beat my times in breaking the targets. Every time I reached the Final Destination in either Classic or Adventure Mode, I eagerly anticipated my grand fight with either Master Hand and Crazy Hand or Giga Bowser in all of his terribly fury.
For all of the flaws this game presents, I can't deny how much I've enjoyed and appreciated my time in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. With co-op included with almost every single-player mode, both my brother and I blasted our way through these fairly quickly. Heck, by the first week since the game's release, we had every character, nearly every stage, and most of the other unlockable features!
Thank goodness for Spring Break! I actually blame this game for our Wii's first break-down...
Brawl was also the springboard that helped me dive into other game series. While I was piqued by the appearances of Ness (I still haven't discovered about him in the original at the time ), Marth and Roy in Melee, it wasn't until I grew really accustomed with Ike, Snake, Samus, and Pit that I wanted to learn more about their respective series. This curiosity helped expand my horizons as a gamer, and I found myself becoming attached to these franchises!
My usual matches with our cousins are of rare occurrences nowadays since we both live in different states now, and it really wouldn't be the same playing online, especially with how terrible it is. However, whenever we visit our smash-bretheren, we always have to scratch that urge to play again. I've always cherished the fleeting moments we have in Brawl since we hardly see each other much; I still remember trapping my older cousin by blocking the safety capsule with the Ice Climbers' Final Smash in the raging hell-fires of Norfair. XD
"THERE WAS NOTHING I COULD DO!!!" 
So far, I'm incredibly excited of what I've seen of the latest installment of the series. The current roster and stages list are solid, and while the game isn't exactly polished from a visual perspective, I'm not too worried about that since it will be cleaned up as its release approaches. The fact that this game will have a balance between Melee and Brawl in terms of gameplay and improved online sounds perfect for me!
Once these games arrive, I hope our traditional matches continue with my favorite relatives in the world . 